The Illuminati is the most commonly referred to secret society in modern times. It is has often been mentioned in Hip Hop by a variety of different emcees. The word illuminati comes from the Latin illuminatus, and means those who are illuminated or the enlightened ones. Throughout history light has been symbolically connected with knowledge, and to be brilliant, bright, or enlightened is to posses a great degree of knowledge. So in connection, the individuals who consider themselves to hold the true knowledge which is not able to be properly handled by the ignorant and blind force of the masses, are the illuminated ones or The Illuminati. People like David Pappen, the President of Harvard University, have warned Americans of the current influences of the Illuminati. Many people claim the Illuminati is a massive over-structure that holds interwoven within itself, a variety of other secret societies, including The Freemasons, and other secretive and powerful organizations. It is inconceivable that the wealthiest and most powerful individuals in the world, and especially this country, would not naturally help each other out. The Webster's Dictionary gives two definitions of conspiracy. One is a blatant plotting in a secretive manner, while the other is more of a gradual progression guided by the people with the most money and power who eventually, through their elite status, develop close knit ties with each other, and consecutively each others families, then over time split off into control groups. This type of conspiracy can evolve in certain ways into the first type, especially through the use of secretive societies to which its membership boasts the worlds most powerful citizens.

Money makes the world go around. The people who hold the most money, have the most power. Under advanced capitalism, as found in our country, the corporations with the most capital can buy politicians. If a billion dollar industry finances a campaign, when elected the politician will do what is in the best interest of that company, and not the best interest of the nation. This is why George W. Bush promised to limit the carbon dioxide emissions that are slowly killing our planet, and then decided not to in the best interest of the oil industry. This is also why he is willing to drill for oil in the small areas we have designated as wild life reserves. When money rules over logical reasoning, and positions are bought by the richest corporations, eventually you will have a society controlled by the people who control the biggest companies. When there are hidden societies who help in positioning people into power who will fulfill their goals, the masses are controlled in an even more directly secretive way. This is the network of power that exists today, and many people consider it the Illuminati, if not directly so then because it maneuvers in the same fashion.

The word Illuminati goes back thousands of years as a description of a group who had a higher level of knowledge, but as an organized society it dates back to 1776. This is the year that the Bavarian Illuminati was founded by Adam Weishaupt . His goal was to establish a secret society that would carry out true masonry and through its secretive measures of establishing power, purify the system of rule. It was originally called the Order of Perfectibilists. Although secretive, his intentions were initially good, however the society soon developed in to an elaborate network of spies and counter-spies, and was banned by Bavaria's government in 1783. Some think the society continued underground.